I served with Dr. Fields at the 14th USAF Dispensary, which became the 14th USAF Hospital, at Nha Trang Air Base, Republic of Vietnam. I left Vietnam in February, about a month-and-a-half before his death. I was shocked and saddened when a comrade wrote to inform me of the crash.

I have visited Bob at the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, DC, a number of times, and have finally gotten over being angry that one so talented and devoted to his family and patients should be taken away from us; now I am just sad when I think of him, but glad I had the opportunity to know him.

Bob was a Flight Surgeon, but put in long night shifts as Medical Officer of the Day, on a rotational basis. I was a Flight Surgeon Technician, but for a time I worked the treatment room, nights. The staff would had long discussions on any number of topics during the (sometimes) quiet hours. This gave me a chance to get to know Bob better.

When I rotated back to the States, I visited a friend in the San Francisco area. I followed Bob's suggestion: my friend and I got all dressed up, went to the "Top of the Mark" at the Mark Hopkins Hotel, and had a drink. We drank a toast to "Bob Fields, the Best Damn Flight Surgeon." I will never forget this genial, kind, and fun man. Here's to you, Bob.

A Note from The Virtual Wall

On 26 March 1969 a UH-1 (tail number 63-13158) of the 20th SOS went down. While hostile fire was the suspected cause, the only certainties are that the aircraft was flying at about 4,000 feet when a severe vibration began. The pilot began an auto-rotation to earth, but control was lost during the descent. The main rotor came apart, severing the tail boom. The aircraft crashed and burned near Duc My, SVN, 12 minutes north of Nha Trang, SVN. Eight men - three crew, five passengers - died in the crash: